Category: Metaphysical
ModalityLight-touch energy technique taught within a personal-development system
Access Bars is a light-touch technique in which a facilitator touches 32 points on the head, taught within Access Consciousness.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Bars, Access Consciousness Bars, Running the Bars, Access Bar
- Tradition
- Access Consciousness, New Age channelled teachings, Energy psychology
- Related concepts
- 32 points on the head, Stored thoughts, beliefs and emotions, Running the Bars, Facilitator certification
Reference record available.
ModalitySpiritual reading and channelling practice
A spiritual practice in which a reader describes consulting a non-physical record of events, thoughts and souls.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Akashic Record, Akasha Chronicle, Akashic reading, Akashic Records reading, Akashic channeling, Akashic field
- Tradition
- Theosophy, Anthroposophy, New Age spirituality, Indian philosophy (source of the term akasha)
- Related concepts
- Akasha, Astral light, Psychometry, Clairvoyance, Akasha Chronicle, Book of Life, Akashic field, Channelling, Intention-setting, Past-life readings
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: bliss as the nature of ultimate reality and as a contemplative state in Indian traditions
Ānanda is a Sanskrit word for bliss, used in Indian philosophy for the nature of ultimate reality and for contemplative joy.
HolisticMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Ananda, Bliss (Ānanda), Sat-chit-ananda, Saccidananda
- Tradition
- Vedanta (Upanishadic and Advaita texts), Classical yoga (Patanjali's Yoga Sutras), Tantric Yoga (Ananda Marga tradition)
- Related concepts
- Sat-chit-ananda, Brahman, Panchakosha (five sheaths of the self), Samprajnata samadhi, Hedonic and eudaimonic well-being
Reference record available.
ModalityAncestor-focused ritual and lineage-based healing practice
A broad term for ritual, spiritual and counselling practices that relate to ancestors, family lineage or inherited trauma.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Ancestral medicine, Lineage repair work
- Tradition
- Ancestor veneration in Bantu-speaking Africa, Chinese ancestor veneration, Confucian royal ancestral rites (Korea), Mexican festivity dedicated to the dead, Andean Indigenous healing (Taky Samy), Contemporary lineage-based ritual practice, Systemic family constellation work
- Related concepts
- Ancestor veneration, Lineage repair, Ancestral guides, Ritual offerings, Historical trauma, Historical unresolved grief, Intergenerational trauma, Transgenerational epigenetic inheritance, Developmental programming, FKBP5 methylation, Family systems
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: belief that behavior, trauma or illness patterns are carried across generations of a family
The idea that behavior, trauma or illness patterns are carried from one generation of a family to the next.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Generational Healing, Generational patterns, Intergenerational patterns, Transgenerational patterns, Family-line patterns
- Tradition
- Bowen family systems theory, Psychogenealogy (French-language tradition), Holocaust-survivor family research, Indigenous historical trauma frameworks, Attachment research, Family and systemic constellation work
- Related concepts
- Multigenerational transmission process, Differentiation of self, Intergenerational trauma, Transgenerational trauma, Historical trauma, Historical unresolved grief, Secondary traumatization, Epigenetic inheritance, Developmental programming, Genogram, Family secrets, Attachment transmission
Reference record available.
ModalityAngel-centred spiritual guidance practices
Angel Therapy is a contemporary spiritual practice in which people seek guidance through communication with angels.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- None recorded
- Tradition
- Contemporary New Age angel spirituality, Abrahamic angelology (Jewish, Christian, Islamic)
- Related concepts
- Angels as messengers, Angel communication, Oracle card readings, Spiritual guidance, Certification marks and branding
Reference record available.
ModalityEnergy-based practice adapted from Reiki for companion, shelter and other animals
Animal Reiki is the offering of Reiki-style hand or meditation sessions to animals, often led by the animal.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Reiki for animals, Pet Reiki, Equine Reiki, Animal Reiki practice
- Tradition
- Usui Reiki Ryōhō (Japan), Western Reiki (Takata lineage)
- Related concepts
- Reiki energy, Universal life energy, Distance treatment
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: European esoteric spiritual movement founded by Rudolf Steiner
Anthroposophy is a spiritual movement founded by Rudolf Steiner in the early 1900s, teaching a path of spiritual knowledge.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Anthroposophy, Anthroposophy (Rudolf Steiner), Spiritual science, Geisteswissenschaft
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Spiritual science, Reincarnation, Threefold social organism, Eurythmy, Waldorf education, Biodynamic farming, Anthroposophic medicine
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: esoteric belief in a personal or planetary spiritual transformation called ascension
Ascension is a New Age and esoteric belief in a spiritual transformation of individuals or of the Earth.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Ascension Techniques, Spiritual ascension, Planetary ascension, Personal ascension, 5D ascension, Earth ascension
- Tradition
- Theosophy, I AM Activity, Church Universal and Triumphant (The Summit Lighthouse), New Age spirituality, Starseed and lightworker communities, Western esotericism
- Related concepts
- Ascended Masters, Great White Brotherhood, Decrees, Karma, Age of Aquarius, 2012 phenomenon, 5D (fifth dimension), Lightworker, Starseed, Ascension symptoms, Higher Self, Millennialism
Reference record available.
ModalityOut-of-body and subtle-body practices
Astral projection is a practice, rooted in Theosophy, of aiming to separate a subtle, non-physical body from the physical body.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Astral travel, Astral travelling, Projection of the astral body
- Tradition
- Theosophy (Blavatsky; Leadbeater), Spiritualism and mesmerism (nineteenth-century Europe and the United States), Western occultism (Golden Dawn; Crowley)
- Related concepts
- Astral body (linga-sarira), Subtle body, Out-of-body experience, Autoscopy, Veridical perception, Temporo-parietal junction, Sleep paralysis, Lucid dreaming, Dissociation
Reference record available.
ModalityAstrological map-based divinatory and interpretive practice
Astrocartography is an astrological technique that plots where planets were angular at birth as lines on a world map.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Astro*Carto*Graphy, A*C*G, ACG, astro-carto-graphy, astrolocality astrology
- Tradition
- Western astrology, Hellenistic astro-chorography, Twentieth-century locational astrology
- Related concepts
- Angular planets, Ascendant (ASC) line, Descendant (DSC) line, Midheaven (MC) line, Imum Coeli (IC) line, Parans, Relocated chart, Local space, Orbs, Cyclo*Carto*Graphy, Birth-time sensitivity
Reference record available.
ModalityDivinatory and interpretive celestial-sign practices
Astrology is the interpretation of the positions and movements of celestial bodies as signs bearing on human affairs.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- None recorded
- Tradition
- Mesopotamian celestial divination, Hellenistic horoscopic astrology, Indian jyotisha, Chinese tianwen (portent astrology), Contemporary Western astrology
- Related concepts
- Natal chart (horoscope), Zodiac, Celestial omens, Sun-sign columns, Natal and katarchic astrology, Barnum effect
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: initiation rite in spiritual traditions and a relational term in psychology
Attunement is a term for spiritual initiation rites and for emotional matching between people in psychology.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Reiki attunement, Reiki initiation, Reiju, Shaktipat initiation, Affect attunement, Affective attunement, Interpersonal attunement, Therapist attunement
- Tradition
- Reiki, Usui Reiki Ryoho, Western Reiki, Siddha Yoga, Developmental psychology, Psychotherapy research, Interpersonal neurobiology
- Related concepts
- Initiation rite, Reiju, Shaktipat, Affect attunement, Interpersonal attunement, Misattunement, Therapeutic alliance, Responsiveness, Expectation effects
Reference record available.
ModalityHistorical Roman and Etruscan divination by birds and sacrificial entrails
Augury and haruspicy are Roman and Etruscan divination practices that read omens from birds and animal entrails.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Augury, Haruspicy, Haruspication, Ornithomancy, Hepatoscopy, Extispicy
- Tradition
- Roman religion, Etruscan religion
- Related concepts
- Spirituality, Awareness, Intuition
Reference record available.
ModalityInterpretive reading of a perceived or imaged energy field
Aura reading is the interpretation of colours and qualities that a reader reports seeing or sensing around a person.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Aura viewing, Aura interpretation
- Tradition
- Theosophy (Besant and Leadbeater), Kilner's chemical-screen method, Kirlian and gas discharge image interpretation
- Related concepts
- Aura, Subtle bodies, Etheric double, Thought-forms, Kirlian photography, Gas discharge visualisation, Synaesthesia, Transliminality, Human energy field
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: the capacity to know one's experience, across contemplative and psychological settings
Awareness is the capacity to know one's experience, a term used differently in philosophy, psychology and contemplation.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Nondual awareness, Witnessing consciousness
- Tradition
- Indian Buddhist philosophy of mind (Abhidharma and Yogacara), Tibetan Buddhism (Nyingma Dzogchen), Hinduism, Western philosophy of mind, Cognitive neuroscience of consciousness, Social and personality psychology, Mindfulness-based programs
- Related concepts
- Consciousness, Attention, Self-awareness, Objective self-awareness, Private self-consciousness, Rumination and reflection, Reflexive awareness (svasamvedana, rang rig), Rigpa (rig pa), Witnessing consciousness (sakshin), Nondual awareness, Higher-order theories of consciousness, Neural correlates of consciousness, Mindful attention awareness, Meditation-related adverse effects, Self-loss and ego dissolution
Reference record available.
ModalityPlant-brew ceremonial and religious practice of Amazonian origin
Ayahuasca is a plant brew, drunk in Amazonian, Brazilian church and retreat ceremonies, that contains DMT.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Ayawaska, Hoasca
- Tradition
- Shipibo-Konibo Amazonian healing, Santo Daime, Barquinha, União do Vegetal (UDV), Neo-shamanic retreat use
- Related concepts
- Plant teacher, Purging, Ceremonial singing, MAO inhibition, Dimethyltryptamine (DMT), Beta-carboline alkaloids, Integration, Ontological difference
Reference record available.
ModalityTraditional healing system of Bali, Indonesia
Balinese spiritual healing is care given by balian, traditional healers of Bali, Indonesia.
AlternativeMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Balian healing, Balinese traditional healing, Balinese traditional medicine, Usada Bali, Balian
- Tradition
- Balinese Hinduism, Balinese traditional medicine (usada), Balinese trance and mediumship traditions
- Related concepts
- balian, usada, lontar, taksu, Tri Hita Karana, niskala (the unseen), loloh, boreh, tampel, melukat, banten offerings, medical pluralism
Reference record available.
ModalityChinese birth-date fate-calculation system
BaZi is a Chinese system that records a birth year, month, day and hour as four pairs of stems and branches.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- BaZi, Four Pillars of Destiny, Eight Characters, Bazi Suanming, Siju mingli
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Qi, Five phases (wuxing), Yin and yang
Reference record available.
ModalityHindu devotional tradition and yoga path
Bhakti is a Hindu tradition of devotion to a personal deity, expressed through song, prayer and worship.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Bhakti yoga
- Tradition
- Hindu devotional traditions, Vaishnava traditions, Shaiva traditions, Tamil alvar and nayanar poet-saints, Gaudiya Vaishnavism
- Related concepts
- Devotion to a personal deity, Kirtan (call-and-response singing), Bhajan, Four paths named in the Bhagavad Gita, Bhakti movement as a historical idea
Reference record available.
ModalityTuning-fork sound practice based on a biofield concept
Biofield Tuning is a method in which practitioners use tuning forks around and on the body to work with a so-called biofield.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- BT
- Tradition
- Biofield Tuning (Eileen Day McKusick, United States), Biofield therapies (term from a 1992 US National Institutes of Health conference)
- Related concepts
- Biofield, Biofield Anatomy Map, Tuning forks, Sound healing, Distance sessions, Perturbations in the biofield
Reference record available.
ModalityReiki-derived energy practice (hands-on or near-body)
Blue Star Reiki is a named Reiki-derived energy practice whose founder and teaching lineage are poorly documented.
ComplementaryMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- None recorded
- Tradition
- Reiki family
- Related concepts
- Subtle energy, Hand placement, Teacher-led lineage
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: South Asian religion and philosophy with regional branches
Buddhism is a family of religious and philosophical traditions that trace their teachings to the Buddha in South Asia.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Buddhist traditions, Buddhist tradition, Buddhism
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Four Noble Truths, Non-self (anātman), Karma, Rebirth, Middle path, Nirvana, Bodhisattva, Five Precepts, Two truths, Buddha-nature
Reference record available.
ModalityGroup ritual drinking of prepared cacao
A cacao ceremony is a group ritual in which participants drink prepared cacao with intention-setting and guided activities.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Ceremonial cacao, Cacao circle, Cacao ritual, Cacao medicine ceremony
- Tradition
- Mesoamerican cacao use (Olmec, Maya, Mexica), Ch'orti' Maya rain ceremonies, Neo-shamanism and New Age practice
- Related concepts
- Theobroma cacao, Ceremonial grade, Theobromine, Cocoa flavanols, Intention setting, Entheogen, Plant medicine, Cultural appropriation
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: Afro-Brazilian religion organized in terreiros and nations
Candomblé is an Afro-Brazilian religion in which communities called terreiros honor deities known as orixás.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Candomblé (Brazil), Candomblé baiano, Afro-Brazilian Candomblé
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Terreiro, Nation (nação), Orixá, Axé, Mãe-de-santo and pai-de-santo, Religious racism, Medical pluralism, Religious syncretism
Reference record available.
ModalityDivination with ordinary playing cards
Cartomancy is fortune-telling with ordinary playing cards, such as a 52-card or 32-card pack, also called card reading.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Card reading, Fortune-telling with playing cards, Playing-card divination
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Not assigned
Reference record available.
ModalitySubtle-body and biofield-based practices
Chakra healing is a group of practices that work with chakras, the subtle-body centres described in Indian tantric traditions.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Chakra balancing, Chakra alignment
- Tradition
- Indian tantric traditions, Hatha and kundalini yoga, Theosophy, Contemporary New Age practice
- Related concepts
- Chakra (cakra), Subtle body, Prana, Kundalini, Biofield, Seven-chakra scheme
Reference record available.
ModalitySpirit-communication and trance practice
Channeling is a practice in which a person speaks or writes for a source said to lie beyond their own mind.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Channelling
- Tradition
- New Age movement (United States, from the 1970s), Modern Spiritualism (from 1848), Theosophy
- Related concepts
- Trance, Dissociation, Absorption, Automatic writing, Possession trance, Channeled texts, Porous mind
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: Abrahamic religion centered on Jesus of Nazareth
Christianity is a religion centered on the life, teaching, death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Christianity, Christian religion, Christian faith
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Prayer, Sacraments, Anointing of the sick, Laying on of hands, Divine healing, Baptism in the Holy Spirit, Forgiveness, Soul, Intercession, Spiritual gifts, Salvation
Reference record available.
ModalityEnergy-work and visualization-based release practice
Cord cutting is a spiritual practice in which imagined energetic links between a person and others are symbolically severed.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Cutting cords, Energetic cord cutting, Psychic cord cutting, Cord release
- Tradition
- Theosophy-influenced esoteric traditions, New Age energy work, Reiki, Contemporary shamanism
- Related concepts
- Energetic cords, Subtle body, Chakras, Energy field, Visualization, Closure ritual, Grief
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: Modern Western spiritual movements drawing on the idea of shamanism
Modern Western spiritual movements that adapt shamanic methods, notably drumming journeys, apart from Indigenous traditions.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Core shamanism, Neo-shamanism, Core shamanism and neo-shamanism, Neoshamanism, Urban shamanism
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Shamanic journey, Drumming, Animism, Spirit helpers, Altered states of consciousness, Cultural appropriation, Cross-cultural method, Spiritual commodification
Reference record available.
ModalityCrystal and gemstone-based energy practice
Crystal Healing is a practice in which crystals or gemstones are worn, carried, held or placed near a person.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Crystal therapy, Lithotherapy
- Tradition
- New Age healing milieu, New Spirituality and vernacular religion, Theosophy, New Thought and spiritualism (historical background)
- Related concepts
- Aura, Chakras, Subtle energy, Crystal property directories, Wearing or carrying stones, Placebo and expectancy, Piezoelectric effect (cited by proponents), Biophoton imaging (Bio-Well)
Reference record available.
ModalitySound practice: instrument-based sound bath and sound meditation
Crystal singing bowls are quartz glass bowls played by rubbing or striking to make sustained tones in sound baths.
ComplementaryHolisticMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Quartz crystal singing bowls, Quartz singing bowls, Crystal bowls, Quartz crystal bowls
- Tradition
- New Age spirituality, Yoga traditions
- Related concepts
- Mindfulness, Attention, Spirituality, Mind-Body Connection
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: Latin American and Mexican American folk healing
Curanderismo is the folk healing tradition of Mexico and Latin America, also practiced in Latino communities in the United States.
MetaphysicalAlternativeHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- curanderismo, Mexican folk healing, Mexican American folk healing, Latin American folk healing, Mexican traditional medicine, curandero, curandera, curanderos
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Soul, Spirituality, Mind-Body Connection
Reference record available.
ModalityFolk healing tradition with manual, herbal and ritual components
Curanderismo is a Mexican and Mexican American folk healing tradition that includes massage, herbs and ritual.
AlternativeMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Curanderismo, Mexican American folk healing, Mexican traditional medicine, Sobada
- Tradition
- Curanderismo, Mexican American curanderismo, Andean curanderismo, Spanish humoral medicine
- Related concepts
- Curandero and curandera, Sobada, Limpia, Susto, Empacho, Caída de la mollera, Hot and cold, Ventosas, Medical pluralism
Reference record available.
ModalityAboriginal wind instrument used in sound practice and breath training
The didgeridoo, called yidaki by the Yolngu, is a wooden drone horn from northern Australia, now played worldwide.
ComplementaryHolisticMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- yidaki, yiḏaki, didjeridu, didjeridoo
- Tradition
- Aboriginal Australian traditions, New Age spirituality
- Related concepts
- Attention, Mind-Body Connection, Spirituality
Reference record available.
ModalityPrayer-based or intention-based healing directed at a person who is not physically present
Distance healing is the practice of directing prayer, intention or healing energy at a person who is not physically present.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Remote healing, Absent healing, Distant healing intention, Noncontact healing
- Tradition
- Christian intercessory prayer, Spiritual healing, Mental healing and mind-cure movements, Energy healing
- Related concepts
- Intention, Intercessory prayer, Nonlocality (as proposed by proponents), Retroactive prayer, Noetic therapies, Expectancy and placebo effects, Blinding, Informed consent
Reference record available.
ModalityFamily of practices that seek information by interpreting signs, lots or oracles
Divination is a family of practices that seek information about unknown matters by interpreting signs or oracles.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Mantikê, Fortune telling
- Tradition
- Shang dynasty oracle-bone divination, Roman augury and haruspicy, Azande poison-oracle consultation, Late antique sortilege, Arabic and Latin geomancy, Yoruba Ifá divination, Chinese yijing divination
- Related concepts
- Artificial and natural divination, Oracle, Querent, Sortilege, Randomisation, Barnum effect, Illusory pattern perception, Epistemic technology
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: belief in a feminine aspect of the divine or of human nature
The Divine Feminine is a spiritual idea of a feminine aspect of the sacred or of the self, used in many traditions.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Sacred Feminine, Feminine Divine, Feminine spirituality
- Tradition
- Shaktism and Devi traditions (Hindu), Chinese yin-yang thought, Jungian analytical psychology, Gnostic Christianity (Sophia), Jewish mysticism and feminist theology (Shekhinah), Goddess movement and feminist spirituality, Women's circles and wellness spirituality
- Related concepts
- Shakti, Devi, Yin, Anima, Archetype, Sophia, Shekhinah, Goddess, Gender essentialism, Contrasexuality
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: archetypal masculine principle in spiritual, Jungian and wellness teachings
The divine masculine is a spiritual concept of an archetypal masculine principle that adherents say is present in any gender.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Sacred Masculine, Sacred Masculinity, Divine Masculine Energy
- Tradition
- Hindu Sankhya and Shaiva thought, Chinese yin-yang cosmology, Jungian analytical psychology, Mythopoetic men's movement, Sacred masculine wellness teachings
- Related concepts
- Purusha, Shiva, Yang, Animus, Archetype, King, Warrior, Magician, Lover, Wild Man, Masculinity ideology, Gender essentialism, Divine Feminine, Green Man
Reference record available.
ModalityDivinatory practices using handheld devices
Dowsing is the practice of using a forked stick, rods or a pendulum to try to locate water, objects or answers.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Water divining, Water witching, Divining, Radiesthesia
- Tradition
- Early modern European mining communities, Folk water divining, French radiesthesia (radiesthésie)
- Related concepts
- Forked-stick (divining rod) dowsing, Pendulum dowsing, Map dowsing, Medical dowsing, Ideomotor action, Motor automatism, Water veins (dowsers' model), Double-blind testing
Reference record available.
ModalityModern hybrid therapy using Aboriginal Dreaming language, not a traditional practice
Dreamtime Healing is the name of a modern hybrid therapy, distinct from traditional Aboriginal Dreaming concepts.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Dreamtime Healing using Holographic Kinetics, Holographic Kinetics
- Tradition
- Tjukurpa (Anangu), as a traditional framework distinct from this therapy, Aboriginal Australian healing on Country, Contemporary New Age and hypnosis-influenced therapy
- Related concepts
- Tjukurpa, The Dreaming, Ngangkari, Holographic Kinetics, Cellular memory, Dimensions, Cultural safety
Reference record available.
ModalityDream-reading label spanning Aboriginal Dreaming concepts and Western dream analysis
Dreamtime interpretation is a phrase used for reading dreams, tied to Aboriginal Dreaming concepts and to Western dream analysis.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Dream interpretation, Dream analysis
- Tradition
- Warlpiri (Jukurrpa), Anangu: Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara (Tjukurpa), Arrernte (altyerre), Yolngu (marayin), Daly region wangga songmen, Western Desert groups, Freudian psychoanalysis, Jungian analytical psychology
- Related concepts
- Dreaming, Dreamtime, Jukurrpa, Tjukurpa, Altyerre, Everywhen, Restricted knowledge, Dream-given songs, Continuity hypothesis, Manifest and latent content, Free association, Amplification, Compensation
Reference record available.
ModalityBranded energy healing method using muscle testing and magnets
The Emotion Code is a branded method in which practitioners use muscle testing to find and release so-called trapped emotions.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- None recorded
- Tradition
- Applied kinesiology, Chinese meridian theory (as adopted by the method), Distant intention and prayer
- Related concepts
- Trapped emotions, Muscle testing, Proxy testing, Chart of emotions, Governing meridian, Heart-Wall, Energy body
Reference record available.
ModalityEnergy-field and spiritual cleansing practices
Energy clearing is a set of practices said to remove stagnant or negative energy from a person or place.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Aura cleansing, Aura therapy, Auric clearing, Energy cleansing
- Tradition
- Theosophy, Healing Touch (nursing-linked energy therapy)
- Related concepts
- Aura, Biofield, Energy field, Subtle energy, Chakras, Qi, Prana
Reference record available.
ModalityBiofield-based touch and non-contact healing practices
Energy healing is an umbrella term for practices in which practitioners aim to influence a person's energy field.
MetaphysicalAlternativeComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Biofield therapy, Biofield therapies, Energy medicine
- Tradition
- Reiki (Japanese origin), Therapeutic Touch, Healing Touch, External qigong, Theosophy-influenced healing
- Related concepts
- Biofield, Human energy field, Vital force, Qi, Prana, Ki, Attunement, Centring, Intention, Local and distant healing, Animal magnetism
Reference record available.
ModalityTapping-based psychotherapy methods linked to energy concepts
Energy psychology is a group of therapies that pair tapping on body points with attention to distressing thoughts or memories.
AlternativeMetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Acupoint tapping, Meridian tapping, Tapping therapies, EFT tapping
- Tradition
- Thought Field Therapy, Emotional Freedom Techniques, Traditional Chinese medicine (borrowed acupoint concepts)
- Related concepts
- Acupoint tapping, Energy meridians, Setup statement, Reminder phrase, Subjective units of distress, Imaginal exposure, Cognitive restructuring, Clinical EFT, Memory reconsolidation
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: scholarly category and popular label for hidden-knowledge currents in Western culture
Esotericism is a scholarly category and popular label for Western currents such as Hermeticism, astrology and alchemy.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Western esotericism, Esoteric practices, Occultism
- Tradition
- Western esotericism, Theosophy, Spiritualism, New Age spirituality, Kabbalah
- Related concepts
- Correspondences, Living nature, Imagination and mediations, Transmutation, Rejected knowledge, Esoteric and exoteric, Hermeticism, Gnosticism, Alchemy, Magical thinking, Spiritual emergency
Reference record available.
ModalityFamily of face-based character, fortune and health interpretation traditions
The practice of interpreting personality, emotional tendencies or health from facial structure, features and expression.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Physiognomy, Mian Xiang, Mien Shiang
- Tradition
- Chinese physiognomy (xiangshu), Greek and European physiognomy, Indian body-reading texts (Samudrika Shastra), Arabic firasa, Japanese physiognomy, Traditional Chinese medicine facial inspection
- Related concepts
- Five phases body types, Animal resemblance, Facial complexion, Body-spirit interaction, Facial trait inference, Facial action coding, Criminal anthropology
Reference record available.
ModalityReligious and devotional healing practices
Faith healing is the use of prayer, ritual and religious belief by or on behalf of ill people, across many faith traditions.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Divine healing, Healing through prayer, Religious healing, Prayer healing
- Tradition
- Christian Science, Pentecostal and charismatic Christianity, Catholic pilgrimage and healing ministries, Islamic ruqyah, Sufi shrine practices, Christian, Islamic and indigenous healing centres in Ghana
- Related concepts
- Intercessory prayer, Divine healing, Anointing with oil, Pilgrimage, Spiritual coping, Medical pluralism, Faith-based medical neglect
Reference record available.
ModalityGroup-based systemic arrangement process
Family constellation is a group method in which participants stand in for family members to show relationships in space.
AlternativeMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Family Constellations, Systemic Constellations, Family Constellation Therapy, Familienaufstellung, Familienstellen, Systemaufstellung
- Tradition
- Hellinger family constellations (Germany), Family sculpture and systemic family therapy, Spiritual family constellation (later Hellinger form), Organisational constellations
- Related concepts
- Representatives (Stellvertreter), Orders of love, Entanglement (Verstrickung), Knowing field (wissendes Feld), Family sculpture, Ritual sentences, Role release (de-roling)
Reference record available.
ModalityChinese system of siting and arranging buildings, spaces and graves
Feng shui is a Chinese practice of siting and arranging buildings, graves, rooms and objects by qi and landscape.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Fengshui, Feng-shui, Chinese geomancy, Kanyu, Wind and water
- Tradition
- Taoism, New Age spirituality
- Related concepts
- Qi
Reference record available.
ModalityWellness practices built on assigning effects to sound or device frequencies
Frequency-based therapy is an umbrella term for practices that assign health roles to specific sound or device frequencies.
AlternativeMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Frequency therapy, Frequency healing, Healing frequencies, Solfeggio frequencies, Rife frequency therapy
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Attunement
Reference record available.
ModalityReiki lineage blending Japanese Gakkai-derived and Western practice
Gendai Reiki Ho is a Reiki method founded by Hiroshi Doi that blends Japanese and Western Reiki teaching.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Gendai Reiki, Gendai Reiki-ho, Gendai Reiki Hō, Modern Reiki Method
- Tradition
- Usui Reiki Ryōhō (Japan), Western Reiki (Takata lineage), Gendai Reiki Hō
- Related concepts
- Reiki energy, Reiju, Attunement, Five precepts (gokai), Self-treatment, Lineage
Reference record available.
ModalityContemplative self-enquiry system built on 64 archetypes
The Gene Keys are a contemplative system by Richard Rudd that links 64 archetypes to I Ching hexagrams.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- The Gene Keys
- Tradition
- I Ching (Yijing), Human Design, Tropical astrology, New Age spirituality
- Related concepts
- 64 Gene Keys, Shadow, Gift and Siddhi, Hologenetic Profile, Prime Gifts, Activation Sequence, Venus Sequence, Pearl Sequence, Contemplation, Gene Keys Pulse, Hexagram wheel
Reference record available.
ModalityDivination from patterns of dots or marks
Geomancy is a form of divination that interprets patterns of dots, known in Arabic as ʿilm al-raml, the science of the sand.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- ʿilm al-raml, Science of the sand, Geomantia, Khaṭṭ al-raml, Ḍarb al-raml, Sand divination
- Tradition
- Islam, Western esotericism, Hermeticism, Ifá, Christianity
- Related concepts
- Intuition, Spirituality, Sacred Geometry, Ancestral Patterns
Reference record available.
ModalityBelief system and dowsing-based site assessment
Geopathic stress is a belief that certain ground locations emit harmful earth energies, located by dowsing.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Erdstrahlen, E-rays, Earth rays, Geopathic zones, Geopathic radiation
- Tradition
- New Age spirituality
- Related concepts
- Vitalism
Reference record available.
ModalityReiki-derived hands-on energy practice
Golden Age Reiki is a Reiki-derived practice that adds spiritual ideas about a Golden Age to hands-on energy work.
ComplementaryMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- None recorded
- Tradition
- Reiki family: Usui Reiki Ryōhō and Western Reiki lineages, Golden Age Reiki lineage (founder and origin not verified)
- Related concepts
- Reiki energy, Hand positions, Attunement, Lineage
Reference record available.
ModalitySound-based relaxation and meditation practice using gongs
Gong therapy is a sound practice in which participants listen, often lying down, to gongs played by a facilitator.
ComplementaryHolisticMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Gong bath, Gong meditation, Gong healing
- Tradition
- Yoga traditions, Buddhism
- Related concepts
- Mind-Body Connection, Spirituality
Reference record available.
ModalitySelf-applied finger-position and focused-attention method linked to energy concepts
The Healing Codes is a self-applied method of holding finger positions near the head and neck while focusing on a memory.
AlternativeMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- The Healing Codes, The Healing Code, Healing Codes system, Self-healing training (Healing Codes)
- Tradition
- Energy psychology, Thought Field Therapy (cited by critics as the source), Christian prayer practice (as framed by the developer)
- Related concepts
- Healing centers, Cellular memories, Truth focus statements, Custom codes, Human energy field, Heart rate variability (developer's measure)
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: South Asian religion and philosophy
Hinduism is a family of religious and philosophical traditions that originated in the Indian subcontinent.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Hinduism, Advaita Vedanta, Sanatana Dharma
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Karma, Reincarnation, Dharma, Moksha, Atman, Brahman, Maya, Bhakti, Guru-disciple tradition, Puja
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: Hmong animist spiritual and healing tradition
Hmong shamanism is the animist spiritual and healing tradition of Hmong communities, centered on the txiv neeb.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Hmong shamanism, Hmong traditional religion, Hmong religiosity, Txiv neeb tradition, Ua neeb
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Ntsuj plig (multiple souls), Poob plig (soul loss), Hu plig (soul calling), Ancestor veneration, Spirit world, Reincarnation, Shaman calling, Medical pluralism
Reference record available.
ModalityNative Hawaiian family reconciliation practice and related modern forgiveness and self-help methods
Hoʻoponopono is a Native Hawaiian family process for restoring relationships, also used for later self-directed methods.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Hoʻoponopono, Ho'oponopono, Hooponopono, Self I-Dentity Through Ho'oponopono, SITH
- Tradition
- Native Hawaiian (Kānaka Maoli) family practice, Queen Liliʻuokalani Children's Center documentation (1960s-1970s), Self I-Dentity Through Ho'oponopono (Morrnah Simeona), Popular four-phrase self-help form
- Related concepts
- pono, haku (facilitator), ʻohana, kukulu kumuhana, hihia, mahiki, mihi, kala, ʻoia iʻo, pule wehe and pule hoʻopau, forgiveness
Reference record available.
ModalityBranded Aboriginal-informed trauma and energy healing method
Holographic Kinetics is a branded healing method developed by Steve Richards and taught as an Aboriginal modality.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- HK, Dreamtime Healing
- Tradition
- Aboriginal Australian Lore (as described by the founder), Dreamtime and the Dreaming (English-language terms)
- Related concepts
- Lore, Hologram of time, Cellular memory, Integration, Dimensions of time, Invisible bodies, Intergenerational trauma, Thought forms
Reference record available.
ModalityTrademarked Reiki system with ignitions, derived from Usui/Tibetan Reiki
Holy Fire Reiki is a Reiki system introduced by William Lee Rand in 2014 that uses a symbol and energy called Holy Fire.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Holy Fire, Holy Fire III Reiki, Usui/Holy Fire Reiki
- Tradition
- Western Reiki (Takata lineage)
- Related concepts
- Reiki energy, Attunement, Lineage, Spirituality
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: African American folk spiritual and healing tradition of the US South
Hoodoo is an African American folk spiritual and healing tradition of the US South, also called rootwork or conjure.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Rootwork, Root work, Conjure, Conjuration, Hoodoo conjure
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Spirituality, Conjure, Rootwork, Root doctor, Mojo, Medical pluralism, Afro-Christianity
Reference record available.
ModalityBirth-data typology and self-knowledge system
Human Design is a belief-based self-knowledge system that turns birth data into a chart called a BodyGraph.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Human Design System
- Tradition
- New Age, Western esotericism, Astrology, I Ching, Kabbalah, Chakra system
- Related concepts
- BodyGraph, Type, Strategy, Authority, Profile, Incarnation cross, Centers, gates and channels, Not-self, Design and personality
Reference record available.
ModalityChinese classic text and divination method
The I Ching, or Yijing, is a Chinese divination text of 64 hexagrams that later became a Confucian classic.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- I Ching, Yijing, Yi Jing, Zhouyi, Book of Changes, Classic of Changes, Zhou Changes
- Tradition
- Chinese divination, Confucianism, Neo-Confucianism, Zhou-period divination, Analytical psychology (Jungian)
- Related concepts
- Hexagrams, Trigrams, Yin and yang lines, Yarrow stalk divination, Ten Wings (Yizhuan), Zhouyi, Guicang, Commentarial traditions, Constancy (heng)
Reference record available.
ModalityCentral African initiatory religion using a plant sacrament, plus extracted-alkaloid use
Bwiti is a Central African religion that uses the iboga plant in initiation; ibogaine is the alkaloid extracted from it.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Bwiti, Bouiti, Bwete, Iboga ceremony, Tabernanthe iboga, Ibogaine
- Tradition
- Bwiti (Gabon), Mitsogho Bwete, Apindji Bwiti, Fang syncretic Bwiti, Ombwiri cult, Western ibogaine treatment settings
- Related concepts
- Initiation, Baptism by iboga, Ancestors, Communion, Tabernanthe iboga, Ibogaine, Noribogaine, QT interval prolongation, Sustainability of wild harvest, Benefit sharing
Reference record available.
ModalityYoruba religious divination system and oral literary tradition
Ifá divination is a Yoruba religious system in which trained priests interpret signs and recite verses.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Ifa, Ifá, Ifa divination system, Yoruba Ifá divination, Ifá oracle
- Tradition
- Yoruba religion, Ifá-Òrìṣà, Lucumí (Cuba), Candomblé
- Related concepts
- Odù, Ẹsẹ Ifá (verses), Babaláwo, Ìyánífá, Ọ̀rúnmìlà, Oral transmission, Initiation, Divination
Reference record available.
ModalityUmbrella family of distinct Indigenous and traditional healing and ceremonial practices
A family label for many distinct healing, ceremonial and medicinal practices held by Indigenous peoples worldwide.
HolisticMetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- First Nations, Native American, Native Canadian, Aboriginal Practices, Indigenous Traditions, Indigenous Health, Amazonian Traditions, Sacred Ceremonies, Ceremonial Practices
- Tradition
- Māori (rongoā), Anangu (ngangkari), Native American Church, Huni Kuin and other Amazonian peoples, Saraguro (Ecuador), Mazatec, Bwiti (Gabon), Native Hawaiian (lomilomi), Sangoma and nyanga (South Africa), Mexican curanderismo, First Nations, Inuit and Métis in Canada
- Related concepts
- Cultural safety, Traditional knowledge, Health equity, Relationality, Land and wellbeing, Ceremony, Plant medicines, Cultural appropriation
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: judgment or knowing reached without deliberate step-by-step reasoning
Intuition is a judgment or sense of knowing that arrives without deliberate, step-by-step reasoning.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Intuitive judgment, Gut feeling
- Tradition
- Decision research and cognitive psychology, Clinical practice (nursing and family medicine), Anthroposophy, Philosophy (Henri Bergson), Contemporary psychic and New Age teaching
- Related concepts
- Dual-process theory, Heuristics, Naturalistic decision making, Tacit knowledge, Gut feelings, Precognition, Presentiment, Clairsentience, Inner guidance
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: Abrahamic religion with Sunni, Shia and Sufi branches
Islam is a monotheistic religion whose adherents, called Muslims, follow the Quran and the example of Muhammad.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Islam
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Tawhid, Shahadah, Salat, Zakat, Sawm, Hajj, Quran, Hadith, Sunnah, Dua, Dhikr, Walaya, Ziyara, Shariah, Prophetic medicine, Jinn, Evil eye
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: South Asian religion and philosophy
Jainism is a South Asian religion that teaches nonviolence and the release of the soul from rebirth.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Jainism, Jaina
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Ahimsa (nonviolence), Karma, Reincarnation, Jiva and ajiva, Anekantavada, Tirthankaras, Kevala (liberation), Three jewels, Paryushana, Sallekhana
Reference record available.
ModalityJapanese Reiki lineage with hands-on treatment training
Jikiden Reiki is a Japanese Reiki lineage, taught by the Yamaguchi family, that traces its teaching to Chujiro Hayashi.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Jikiden Reiki Kenkyukai, Jikiden Reiki Institute, Jikiden reiki
- Tradition
- Jikiden Reiki Kenkyukai (Kyoto, Japan), Hayashi Reiki Kenkyukai (1930s Japan), Usui Reiki Ryoho
- Related concepts
- Jikiden (directly transmitted), Shoden, Okuden, Shihan, Shihankaku, Reiju, Byosen, Hand placement
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: Jewish religion and culture
Judaism is the religion and culture of the Jewish people, with several movements and a long textual tradition.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Judaism
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Halakhah, Pikuach nefesh, Mi Shebeirach, Refaeinu, Vidui, Kabbalah, Sefirot, Ein Sof, Tikkun, Devekut, Hasidism, Rebbe, Mitnagdim, Shabbat, Soul
Reference record available.
ModalityAstrological system and timekeeping tradition of South Asia
Jyotish is the South Asian astrological tradition, also called Vedic astrology, linking sky positions at birth to life events.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Jyotisha, Jyotisa, Vedic astrology
- Tradition
- Hinduism
- Related concepts
- Karma
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: Jewish mystical tradition and its Christian and Hermetic offshoots
Kabbalah is a Jewish mystical tradition with medieval roots, centered on texts such as the Zohar.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Kabbala, Cabala, Qabalah, Jewish mysticism
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Soul, Reincarnation, Spirituality, Spiritual Growth, Sefirot, Ein Sof, Tzimtzum, Tikkun, Gilgul, Zohar, Devekut, Hasidism
Reference record available.
ModalityAmazonian skin-secretion ritual and its Western adaptations
Kambo is the dried skin secretion of the Amazonian giant monkey frog, applied to small skin burns in ritual practice.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Kambô, Sapo, Toad vaccine, Vacina do sapo, Giant monkey frog secretion
- Tradition
- Katukina, Yawanawá, Kaxinawá (Huni Kuĩ), Matsés, Mayoruna, Rubber-tapper and Brazilian ayahuasca-religion settings, Western neoshamanic ceremonies
- Related concepts
- Phyllomedusa bicolor, Panema, Cleansing and purification, Phyllokinin, Dermorphin, Deltorphin, Phyllocaerulein, Sauvagine, Hyponatremia, Cultural appropriation and benefit-sharing
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: belief that intentional actions have moral consequences, often across lifetimes
Karma is the idea in Indian religions that intentional actions carry moral consequences, in this life or later ones.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Kamma, Karman, Law of karma, Law of cause and effect, Karmic law, Karmic causality
- Tradition
- Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Theosophy, New Age spirituality
- Related concepts
- Rebirth, Merit (punya), Intention (cetana), Just-world belief, Liberation (moksha), Samsara, Transfer of merit, Karma yoga
Reference record available.
ModalityTrademarked Reiki system taught to Reiki masters with attunements
Karuna Reiki is a Reiki system William Lee Rand named in 1995 and teaches to Reiki masters through his training center.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Karuna Reiki®, Holy Fire Karuna Reiki, Reiki of Compassion, Sai Baba Reiki
- Tradition
- Western Reiki (Takata lineage)
- Related concepts
- Reiki energy, Universal life energy, Attunement, Lineage, Spirituality
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: Pano-speaking Indigenous healing and ceremonial tradition of Acre, Brazil
The Katukina are a Pano-speaking Indigenous people of the upper Juruá in Acre, Brazil, with shamanic and healing traditions.
HolisticMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Katukina, Katukina Pano, Pano Katukina, Noke Koï, Katukina do Campinas
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Kampô, Panema (hunting bad luck), Rome (shamanic power), Oni (ayahuasca), Rome poto (snuff), Romeya (shamanic specialist), Shamanic songs, Traditional knowledge, Noke haweti (culture)
Reference record available.
ModalityJapanese Reiki lineage (Buddhist-influenced)
Komyo Reiki is a Japanese Reiki lineage led by Buddhist monk Hyakuten Inamoto, taught through Komyo Reiki Kai.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Komyo Reiki Kai, Komyo Reikido, Komyo Reiki Do
- Tradition
- Buddhism, Usui Reiki Ryōhō (Japan), Jikiden Reiki, Gendai Reiki Hō
- Related concepts
- Reiki energy, Reiju, Shoden, okuden and shinpiden, Self-treatment, Lineage, Awareness, Spirituality, Spiritual Growth, Mind-Body Connection
Reference record available.
ModalityYogic energy concept and a modern breath, movement and meditation system
Kundalini is a spinal energy concept in tantric yoga and the name of a modern yoga system of kriyas.
MetaphysicalComplementaryHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Kuṇḍalinī, Kundalini yoga, Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan
- Tradition
- Śākta tantra, Yoga traditions, Tantric Yoga, Ananda Marga (a Tantric Yoga school), Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan, 3HO (Healthy, Happy, Holy Organization)
- Related concepts
- Kuṇḍalinī as a dormant rising energy, Cakras (energy centres), Central energy channel in the spine, Kriya (a set practice sequence), Pranayama (breath regulation), Mantra and chanting, Meditation, Physio-kundalini (Sannella's term), Kundalini Awakening Scale, Kundalini-like experiences and psychopathology
Reference record available.
ModalityContemplative walking practice on a patterned path
Labyrinth walking is the practice of walking a single winding path to a centre and back, usually as a contemplative exercise.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Walking the labyrinth, Labyrinth walk, Meditative labyrinth walking
- Tradition
- Classical (Cretan) labyrinth design, Medieval Christian cathedral labyrinths, Contemporary labyrinth movement
- Related concepts
- Single winding path, Seven-circuit classical design, Eleven-circuit medieval design, Walking meditation, Facilitated labyrinth walk, Collective walking with a shared intention, Finger labyrinth, Labyrinth versus maze
Reference record available.
ModalityCartomancy with a 36-card illustrated deck
Lenormand Cards are a 36-card deck of illustrated everyday symbols that practitioners read in combinations for divination.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Lenormand deck, Lenormand oracle, Petit Lenormand, Le Normand cards, Mademoiselle Lenormand cards
- Tradition
- Cartomancy tradition
- Related concepts
- Intuition
Reference record available.
ModalitySpontaneous vocal, written or gestural spiritual expression
Light language is a contemporary spiritual practice of unplanned sounds, symbols or gestures held to carry non-verbal meaning.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Light Languages, Language of Light, Angelic language, Tongues of angels, Tonguespeak, Non-religious glossolalia
- Tradition
- New Age spirituality, Channelling and energy-work communities
- Related concepts
- Glossolalia, Vibrational communication, Altered states of consciousness, Channelling, Toning, Activation, Higher self, Light codes, Xenoglossy
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: belief that thoughts, intentions or visualization bring about matching outcomes
Manifestation is the belief that thoughts, intentions or visualization can bring about matching outcomes in a person's life.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Law of attraction, Manifesting
- Tradition
- New Thought, Mind-cure movement, Prosperity theology, Popular self-help
- Related concepts
- Law of attraction, Positive thinking, Visualization, Mental contrasting, Positive fantasies versus expectations, Positive self-statements, Expectation and placebo, Self-blame
Reference record available.
ModalityEFT-based tapping and memory-imagery method (energy psychology)
Matrix Reimprinting is a tapping-based method that adapts EFT to revisit and re-picture memories of past events.
AlternativeMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Matrix Reimprinting using EFT, MR (Matrix Reimprinting), EFT Matrix Reimprinting
- Tradition
- Traditional Chinese Medicine, New Age spirituality
- Related concepts
- Qi, Mind-Body Connection, Memory reconsolidation
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: Maya medical and healing traditions of Mesoamerica
Maya healing is the set of medical and ritual traditions of Maya peoples in Mexico, Guatemala and Belize.
MetaphysicalAlternativeHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Maya healing, Masewal Maya healing in Belize, Maya midwifery, Arvigo Institute and Tul'ix lineage, Maya traditional medicine, Mayan healing
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Cosmovision, Fright-related illness, Traditional midwifery, Bonesetting, Medicinal plant knowledge, Intercultural health, Tsak (healing)
Reference record available.
ModalityIntuitive health assessment (claimed extrasensory perception of health conditions)
Medical intuition is the claimed ability to perceive information about a person's health by intuition rather than examination.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Medical Intuitive, Medical Intuitive Reading, Intuitive Diagnosis
- Tradition
- Trance readings (Edgar Cayce lineage), New Age and holistic health movement, Energy medicine
- Related concepts
- Intuitive diagnosis, Remote or at-a-distance reading, Energy anatomy, Biofield, Reading (session), Scanning
Reference record available.
ModalitySpirit communication and trance practices
Mediumship is the claimed ability of a person to communicate with deceased people or other non-material beings.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Spirit mediumship
- Tradition
- Spiritualism (United States and Britain, from 1848), Spiritism (Kardec; Brazil), Chinese spirit mediumship (dang-ki, Singapore)
- Related concepts
- Anomalous information reception, Trance, Dissociation, Cold reading, Continuing bonds, Survival hypothesis
Reference record available.
ModalityReiki lineage with a Tibetan Buddhist framing
Men Chho Reiki is a Reiki-family lineage, framed as Tibetan Buddhist, using Reiki hand positions with mantra and visualization.
ComplementaryMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- None recorded
- Tradition
- Reiki family, Tibetan Buddhism (lineage framing, not verified)
- Related concepts
- Hand-position energy practice, Medicine Buddha, Mantra and visualization, Lineage attribution
Reference record available.
CategoryCategory: label for practices that point beyond the physical world
Metaphysical is a label for practices and movements that point beyond the physical world, apart from academic metaphysics.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Metaphysical practices
- Tradition
- Swedenborgianism, Mesmerism, Transcendentalism, New Thought, Spiritualism, Theosophy, Christian Science, New Age spirituality
- Related concepts
- Metaphysics (academic philosophy), Metaphysical religion, Mind and spirit healing, Mind-body connection, Energy and flow, Combinative religiosity, Religion, spirituality and wellbeing
Reference record available.
ModalityChinese divinatory face reading within the physiognomy (xiangshu) tradition
Mian Xiang is the Chinese practice of reading fortune and character from the shape, color and regions of the face.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Xiangmian, Mianxiang, Mien shiang, Chinese face reading
- Tradition
- Chinese physiognomy (xiangshu), Ming-period physiognomy manuals, Chinese medical complexion inspection (comparison)
- Related concepts
- Three Sections, Twelve Palaces, Five Mountains and Four Rivers, Five Phases body types, Qi and color, Flowing years, Fengshui (geomancy)
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: idea that mental and bodily states influence one another
The idea that mental and bodily states influence one another, studied in philosophy, medicine and psychology.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Mind-body relationship, Mind-body interaction, Mind and body connection, Mind-body link
- Tradition
- Seventeenth-century European philosophy, Psychosomatic medicine, Psychoneuroimmunology, Behavioral medicine
- Related concepts
- Mind-body dualism, Problem of mind-body interaction, Biopsychosocial model, Psychoneuroimmunology, Stress response, Allostatic load, Conditioned immune response, Placebo effect, Open-label placebo, Embodied cognition, Persistent somatic symptoms, Mind and body practices
Reference record available.
ModalitySouth Indian palm-leaf divination
Nadi astrology is a South Indian form of divination in which readers claim to find a person's life account on palm leaves.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Nadi Jyotishyam, Nadi Jothidam, Nāḍī divination, Naadi astrology, Palm-leaf astrology, Ola leaf horoscopes
- Tradition
- Tamil Nadu thumb-impression nāḍī reading, Sanskrit nāḍī texts (Kerala region), Hindu astrology (jyotiṣa)
- Related concepts
- Nāḍī (aṃśa) divisions, Thumb impression reading, Palm-leaf manuscripts, Karma and destiny, Śānti (propitiation), Jīva nāḍī, Kāṇḍam chapters, Barnum effect
Reference record available.
ModalityHindu life-cycle rite (samskara)
A Hindu life-cycle rite, one of the samskaras, in which a newborn child is formally given a name.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Nāmakaraṇa, Namakarana, Namkaran, Namakarmam, Namakarana samskara, Hindu naming ceremony
- Tradition
- Hinduism, Grihya Sutra household ritual literature, Dharmashastra literature, Jyotisha (Hindu astrology)
- Related concepts
- samskara, nakshatra name, secret name, popular name, paddhati manuals, ceremonial impurity after birth, rashi
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: contemporary Western spiritual milieu and movement
New Age spirituality is a loose Western spiritual milieu, called a movement in some accounts, that took shape in the 1960s.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Contemporary New Age spirituality, New Age movement, Contemporary spirituality, New Age spirituality
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Age of Aquarius, Higher Self, Channeling, Holism, Human potential, Self-spirituality, Spiritual supermarket, Cultic milieu, Personal transformation, Alternative spirituality
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: American mental-healing and metaphysical religious movement
A set of nineteenth-century American mental-healing and metaphysical religious groups that centers on the power of thought.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- New Thought
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Affirmative prayer, Mind cure, Spiritual Mind Treatment, Power of thought, Science of Mind, Divine Science, Unity, Prosperity, Oneness of God and humanity, Spiritual law
Reference record available.
ModalityNumber-based symbolic interpretation and divination
Numerology is a belief-based practice that assigns symbolic meanings to numbers drawn from names and birth dates.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Number divination
- Tradition
- Western esotericism, New Thought, Hebrew gematria, Greek isopsephia
- Related concepts
- Pythagorean letter table, Chaldean label, Birth-date digits, Name digits, Reduction to single digits, Master numbers, Compound numbers
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: Afro-Caribbean spiritual and healing practice of the Anglophone Caribbean
Obeah is a set of African-derived spiritual and healing practices found in the Anglophone Caribbean.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Obia, Obeah (Obia)
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Spirituality, Divination, Protection, Spirit possession, Medical pluralism, Religious syncretism
Reference record available.
ModalityCard-based divination and reflective practice
Oracle cards are illustrated card decks, distinct from tarot, used for divination, guidance or self-reflection.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Oracle decks, Oracle card decks, Cartomancy decks, Fortune-telling cards, Divination cards
- Tradition
- Lenormand cartomancy, Kipper cards, Sibilla cards, Contemporary New Age oracle decks
- Related concepts
- Cartomancy, Divination, Card spreads, Guidebook meanings, Self-reflection, Barnum effect
Reference record available.
ModalityHistorical divination practice: heated bone and shell cracking, Bronze Age China
Oracle-bone divination is a Shang-dynasty practice of reading cracks made by heating ox bones and turtle shells.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Oracle bone divination, Scapulimancy and plastromancy in Shang China, Jiaguwen divination, Osteo-pyromancy (China)
- Tradition
- Shang dynasty religion
- Related concepts
- Ancestral Patterns, Spirituality
Reference record available.
ModalityVocal technique and sound practice (overtone and multiphonic singing)
Overtone singing is a vocal technique in which one singer sounds a low drone and a separate high melody together.
ComplementaryHolisticMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Harmonic singing, Overtone chanting, Throat singing, Diphonic singing, Biphonic singing, Khoomei, Khöömii, Harmonic chant
- Tradition
- Buddhism, New Age spirituality, Tuvan, Mongolian
- Related concepts
- Awareness, Attention, Spirituality, Mind-Body Connection
Reference record available.
ModalityAndean ritual offerings and reciprocity with the earth
Offerings and gestures of reciprocity to Pachamama, the Andean earth being, practiced by Quechua and Aymara communities.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Pachamama offerings, Pachamama ceremonies, Mother Earth offerings, Corpachada, Ch'alla, Offerings to Pachamama
- Tradition
- Quechua, Aymara, Andean communities of Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, northern Argentina and northern Chile
- Related concepts
- Pachamama, pacha, ayni (reciprocity), corpachada, ch'alla, mutual rearing, cosmopraxis, coca leaf offerings, August cycle
Reference record available.
ModalityDivinatory hand reading
Palmistry is the practice of interpreting the lines and shapes of the hands to describe character or foretell events.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Chiromancy, Cheiromancy, Palm reading, Hand reading, Chirology, Hasta-sāmudrika-śāstra
- Tradition
- Western chiromancy, South Asian Sāmudrikaśāstra, Chinese physiognomy (xiangshu)
- Related concepts
- Heart line, Head line, Life line, Palm lines, Astrological correspondences, Dermatoglyphics (separate field), Barnum effect
Reference record available.
ModalityHypnosis-based guided recall of supposed previous lives
Past life regression is a practice in which hypnosis is used to elicit scenes presented as memories of previous lives.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Past-life regression, Past life therapy, Past life regression therapy, PLR
- Tradition
- Indian rebirth traditions (saṃsāra), Theosophy, Twentieth-century hypnotic regression
- Related concepts
- Hypnotic regression, Hypnotisability, Suggestion, False memory, Cryptomnesia, Reincarnation, Rebirth, Karma, Previous personality
Reference record available.
ModalityPendulum-based divination and energy assessment
Pendulum healing is the use of a hand-held suspended weight to seek yes or no answers about health and wellbeing.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Pendulum dowsing, Medical radiesthesia
- Tradition
- French and Swiss radiesthesia (early twentieth century), British dowsing societies, Chakra-based energy assessment, Ideomotor signalling in hypnoanalysis
- Related concepts
- Ideomotor action, Chevreul pendulum illusion, Yes and no calibration, Radiesthetic diagnosis, Chakra charts, Geopathic stress, Authorship misattribution, Implicit knowledge
Reference record available.
ModalityIndigenous sacramental plant ceremonies (peyote cactus)
Peyote and the Native American Church covers sacramental use of the peyote cactus by Indigenous peoples of North America.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Peyotism, Peyote religion, Peyote way, Native American Church of North America, Hikuri (Wixárika), Jíkuri (Rarámuri)
- Tradition
- Native American Church, Half Moon (Tipi) way, Big Moon (Cross Fire) way, Wixárika (Huichol) peyote pilgrimage, Rarámuri (Tarahumara) jícuri ceremonies, Navajo (Diné) peyote meetings
- Related concepts
- Peyote (Lophophora williamsii), Mescaline, Roadman, Sacrament, Hikuri, Wirikuta, Peyote gardens, Indigenous stewardship, Cultural appropriation
Reference record available.
ModalityCharacter reading from facial and bodily features, historical and computational
Physiognomy is the practice of inferring a person's character or traits from the form and features of the face and body.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Physiognomics, Western physiognomy
- Tradition
- Greek and Roman physiognomy, Arabic firasa literature, European Renaissance and Enlightenment physiognomy, Phrenology and criminal anthropology (related offshoots)
- Related concepts
- Physiognomonica attributed to Aristotle, Polemon's Physiognomy, Lavater's Physiognomische Fragmente, First impressions of faces, Facial width-to-height ratio, Criminality from face, Facial analysis accuracy disparities, Phrenology, Born criminal
Reference record available.
ModalityAcupuncture-linked methods using planetary, astrological or calendrical correspondences
Planetary acupuncture is a loosely used term for acupuncture or tuning-fork methods tied to planets or astrology.
AlternativeMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Astro-acupuncture, Astrological acupuncture, Planetary tuning-fork acupuncture, Chronoacupuncture
- Tradition
- Traditional Chinese medicine, Chinese astrology and calendrical cosmology, Acutonics (planetary tuning forks)
- Related concepts
- Five planets and five phases, Celestial stems and terrestrial branches, Midnight-noon ebb-flow (Ziwu liuzhu), Eight Methods of the Sacred Turtle (Linggui bafa), Chronoacupuncture, Nine Palaces, Planetary tuning forks, Astral-terrestrial correspondences
Reference record available.
ModalitySpiritual healing practice working with plant spirits
Plant Spirit Medicine is a modern spiritual healing practice in which healers call on the spirits of plants.
AlternativeMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- None recorded
- Tradition
- Eliot Cowan lineage, Wixárika (Huichol) teachings, as proponents state, Chinese Five Element theory, as proponents state, Contemporary Western shamanism
- Related concepts
- Plant spirits, Five Elements, Spiritual healing, Balance and harmony, Plant allies
Reference record available.
ModalityTraditional Central African divination (oracle consultation)
A divination practice of the Azande of Central Africa in which a chicken's reaction to a poison answers a question.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Benge oracle, Azande poison oracle, Zande poison oracle, Zande benge oracle, Chicken poison oracle
- Tradition
- Azande traditional religion
- Related concepts
- Spirituality
Reference record available.
ModalityNon-touch energy healing system with a spiritual curriculum
Pranic Healing is a modern energy healing system, taught in graded courses, that works with prana and the chakras.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Modern Pranic Healing, MCKS Pranic Healing, Pranic Energy Healing
- Tradition
- Theosophy, Hinduism, Buddhism, Yoga traditions
- Related concepts
- Qi, Vitalism, Karma, Soul, Spirituality, Spiritual Growth, Awareness
Reference record available.
ModalityReligious and spiritual devotional practice
Prayer is a devotional act of communication with God, a deity or the sacred, practiced in many religious traditions.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Petitionary prayer, Intercessory prayer, Distant prayer, Salat, Du'a, Tefillah
- Tradition
- Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism
- Related concepts
- Petitionary prayer, Intercessory prayer, Distant prayer, Religious coping, Salat, Du'a, Tefillah, Japa, Dedication of merit
Reference record available.
ModalityCeremonial ingestion of psilocybin-containing mushrooms in guided settings
Psilocybin mushroom ceremonies are guided rituals in which psilocybin-containing mushrooms are ingested, documented in Mexico.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Sacred mushroom ceremonies, Mushroom veladas, Teonanácatl ceremonies, Magic mushroom ceremonies
- Tradition
- Mazatec (Sierra Mazateca, Oaxaca), Nahua, Zapotec, Mixe, Chatino, Matlazinca, Totonac, Contemporary retreat settings
- Related concepts
- Velada, Chjota chine (people of knowledge), Teonanácatl, Child saints, Curandero, Set and setting, Communitas, Psilocybin-assisted therapy
Reference record available.
ModalityBranded belief-change method using muscle testing and set postures
PSYCH-K is a trademarked belief-change method that uses muscle testing and set postures, taught by its originator's organisation.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- PER-K
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Subconscious beliefs, Balance (PSYCH-K term), Whole-brain state, Muscle testing, Self-limiting beliefs
Reference record available.
ModalityDivinatory and mediumistic consultation
A paid consultation in which a person who claims psychic ability gives impressions about a client's life.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Psychic consultation, Clairvoyant reading, Intuitive reading
- Tradition
- Modern Spiritualism, Psychical research, Commercial fortune-telling
- Related concepts
- Extrasensory perception, Clairvoyance, Mediumship, Anomalous information reception, Cold reading, Barnum effect
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: vital force or energy in Chinese philosophy and medicine
Qi is a Chinese term for a vital force or energy, used in philosophy, traditional medicine and qigong.
ComplementaryMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Ch'i, Chi, Life-Breath (Philosophy), Vital Energy (Philosophy)
- Tradition
- Pre-Qin Chinese philosophy (Mencius, Zhuangzi, Xunzi), Han-dynasty thought (Lu Jia), Classical Chinese medical texts (Huangdi Neijing), Traditional Chinese Medicine, Qigong and tai chi practice, WHO Western Pacific standard medical terminology
- Related concepts
- Vital force or life-breath, Meridians, Yin and yang, Five phases, Essence, spirit, blood and fluids, Qi as physical energy (interpretive reading), Nonspecific effects in acupuncture research
Reference record available.
ModalityChinese breath, movement and attention practices
Qigong is a set of Chinese practices that combine slow movement, breath control and focused attention.
ComplementaryHolisticMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Chi kung, Qi gong, Chi gong
- Tradition
- Daoyin (guiding and pulling) exercise, Qigong therapy (1950s China), Medical qigong, Baduanjin, Wuqinxi, Yijinjing, Liuzijue
- Related concepts
- Qi, Regulation of mind, breath and body, Daoyin, External qigong therapy, Qigong deviation, Qigong-precipitated psychosis
Reference record available.
ModalityMind-body and energy-based healing practices using quantum vocabulary
Quantum healing is a label for mind-body and energy-based practices that draw on the vocabulary of quantum physics.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- None recorded
- Tradition
- Ayurveda-influenced mind-body medicine, New Age and holistic health, Biofield and energy healing
- Related concepts
- Quantum healing (Chopra, 1989), Quantum medicine, Quantum biology, Biofield, Subtle energy, Nonlocality and entanglement as invoked metaphors, Consciousness and observation as invoked in healing, Mind-body medicine, Focused intention, Critiques of quantum mysticism
Reference record available.
ModalityReiki lineage: Western-developed system based on Usui Reiki
Rainbow Reiki is a Reiki system developed in Germany by Walter Lübeck that adds its own techniques to Usui-based training.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Rainbow Reiki®
- Tradition
- Usui Reiki Ryōhō (Japan), Western Reiki (Takata lineage)
- Related concepts
- Reiki energy, Reiju, Attunement, Shoden, okuden and shinpiden, Distance treatment, Lineage
Reference record available.
ModalityReiki lineage with added Tibetan-attributed elements
Raku Kei is a Reiki lineage associated with Iris Ishikuro and Arthur Robertson that adds Tibetan-attributed elements.
AlternativeMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Raku Kei Reiki, The Way of the Dragon
- Tradition
- Reiki, Usui Reiki (Takata lineage), Usui/Tibetan Reiki, Tibetan Reiki (generic term)
- Related concepts
- Attunement, Raku symbol, Violet Breath, Okuden symbols, Reiki lineage
Reference record available.
ModalityBranded hands-off biofield practice
Reconnective Healing is a branded hands-off energy practice founded by the chiropractor Eric Pearl in the early 1990s.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- The Reconnection, RH
- Tradition
- Contemporary biofield and energy healing practices, Chiropractic-origin branded method (Eric Pearl)
- Related concepts
- Reconnective frequencies, Energy, light and information, Biofield, Axiatonal lines, Entrainment, Hands-off practice
Reference record available.
ModalityFamily of hands-on and non-contact energy healing practices
Reiki is a family of practices in which a practitioner uses touch or hand placement near the body to direct energy.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Reiki therapy
- Tradition
- Usui Reiki Ryōhō (Japan), Western Reiki (Takata lineage), Jikiden Reiki, Gendai Reiki Hō, Reiki Jin Kei Do, Rainbow Reiki, The Radiance Technique
- Related concepts
- Reiki energy, Universal life energy, Reiju, Attunement, Shoden, okuden and shinpiden, Five precepts (gokai), Distance treatment, Self-treatment, Lineage
Reference record available.
ModalityReiki lineage with Buddhist-style meditation training
Reiki Jin Kei Do is a Western-era Reiki lineage that pairs Reiki training with Buddhist-style meditation.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Reiki Jin-Kei Do, Jin Kei Do, Reiki Jin-Kei-Do, Eastern lineage of Reiki
- Tradition
- Buddhism, Usui Reiki Ryōhō (Japan), Western Reiki (Takata lineage)
- Related concepts
- Reiki energy, Attunement, Lineage, Self-treatment, Distance treatment, Awareness, Spirituality, Spiritual Growth
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: online ASMR trend of simulated energy removal, not a Reiki technique
Reiki plucking is an online ASMR video trend of quick pulling hand motions, not a form of Reiki.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Energy plucking, Plucking negative energy
- Tradition
- Online ASMR community
- Related concepts
- Energy healing, Aura, ASMR, Reiki energy
Reference record available.
ModalityReiki style: hand-placement energy practice with added metaphysical teachings
Reiki Plus is a style of Reiki founded by David Jarrell that adds metaphysical teachings to Usui Shiki Ryoho.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Reiki Plus Institute system, Jarrell Reiki Plus
- Tradition
- Usui Reiki Ryōhō (Japan), Western Reiki (Takata lineage)
- Related concepts
- Reiki energy, Universal life energy, Attunement, Distance treatment, Lineage, Spirituality
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: belief that a person is born again into a new life after death
Reincarnation is the belief that a person is born again after death into a new life, in forms that vary by tradition.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Rebirth, Metempsychosis, Transmigration of the soul, Past lives
- Tradition
- Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, Druze, Indigenous North American traditions, Pythagoreanism
- Related concepts
- Samsara, Karma, Rebirth, Metempsychosis, Transmigration, Moksha, Notq, Cases of the reincarnation type, Past-life memories, Source monitoring
Reference record available.
ModalityEnergy healing touch practice
Restorative Reiki is a Reiki-family practice in which a practitioner places the hands lightly on or just above the body.
ComplementaryMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- None recorded
- Tradition
- Usui Reiki, associated with Mikao Usui in Japan in the early twentieth century, Western Reiki lineage through Hawayo Takata
- Related concepts
- Life energy (rei and ki), Hands-on or hands-off touch, Reiki family of related approaches
Reference record available.
ModalityDivination using rune symbols
Rune reading is a modern divination practice in which rune symbols are cast or drawn and interpreted.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Runecasting, Rune casting, Runic divination
- Tradition
- Modern Heathen and Germanic neopagan practice, New Age divination, Armanen runic esotericism (Guido von List)
- Related concepts
- Elder Futhark, Runecasting, Runic guidebooks, Armanen runes, Blank rune, Rune stones, Runology
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: belief that certain shapes and ratios carry symbolic or spiritual meaning
Sacred geometry is the idea that certain shapes and ratios carry symbolic or spiritual meaning.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Sacred Geometry Healing
- Tradition
- Pythagorean and Platonic philosophy, Islamic geometric art, Gothic architecture, Contemporary esoteric spirituality
- Related concepts
- Golden ratio, Platonic solids, Girih patterns, Mandala, Flower of Life, Metatron's Cube, Yantra
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: modern Western movement treating sexual experience as a spiritual and wellness path
Sacred sexuality is a modern Western spiritual and wellness movement that frames sex as a path to meaning and connection.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Neo-tantra, Tantric sex, Western tantra, Modern tantra
- Tradition
- Tantra, Hinduism, Buddhism
- Related concepts
- Sacred sexuality, Sexual energy, Consent and boundaries, Mindfulness-based sex therapy, Sensate focus
Reference record available.
ModalityReiki-family energy practice (light touch or distant)
Saku Reiki is a named Reiki-family practice whose founder, lineage and methods are not documented in the sources reviewed.
ComplementaryMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- None recorded
- Tradition
- Reiki (Usui system), Japan, early twentieth century
- Related concepts
- Light touch on or above the body, Practitioner as a channel for energy, Training levels in the Usui system, Subtle energy framing without verified physical mechanism
Reference record available.
ModalityIndian divinatory reading of bodily marks
Samudrika Shastra is the Indian tradition of reading marks and features of the body to describe character and fortune.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Samudrik Shastra, Sāmudrika-śāstra, Sāmudrikaśāstra, Samudrika, Indian physiognomy
- Tradition
- Brahmanical jyotiḥśāstra (divination literature), Buddhist mahāpuruṣa-lakṣaṇa tradition, Jain lists of birthmarks of a Tirthankara, Regional practice in Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu
- Related concepts
- Lakṣaṇa (bodily marks), Mahāpuruṣa (great person), Cakravartin (universal monarch), Tila (moles), Hasta-sāmudrika (palm reading), Karma and past deeds, Planetary correspondences, Physiognomy belief
Reference record available.
ModalityCeremonial use of mescaline-containing columnar cacti
A mescaline-containing Andean columnar cactus used in healing and spiritual ceremonies, and the ceremonies themselves.
AlternativeMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Huachuma, Wachuma, San Pedro cactus, Aguacolla, San Pedrillo, Cimora
- Tradition
- Northern Peruvian curanderismo (mesa tradition), Saraguro yachakkuna healing (southern Ecuador), Contemporary ceremonial retreats outside the Andes
- Related concepts
- Mesa, Mescaline, Curandero, Yachak, Limpia, Soplada, Huachuma ceremony, Echinopsis pachanoi, Trichocereus
Reference record available.
ModalitySouthern African ancestral-calling diviner and healer tradition
Sangoma is a Southern African tradition in which called and trained diviner-healers consult ancestors.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Isangoma, Izangoma, Igqirha, Ubungoma
- Tradition
- Zulu (amaZulu), Xhosa (amaXhosa), Other Nguni-speaking peoples, Southern African traditional health practitioners
- Related concepts
- Amadlozi (ancestors), Ukuthwasa (apprenticeship), Ubungoma, Ancestral calling, Divination, Muti (herbal remedies), Inyanga (herbalist), Umthandazi (faith healer), Collaboration with biomedical services
Reference record available.
ModalityAfro-Cuban initiatory religion with divination and ritual healing roles
Santería is an Afro-Cuban religion, also called Regla de Ocha or Lucumí, that honors Yoruba-derived orishas.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Regla de Ocha, Lucumí, Lukumí, Regla Lucumí, Regla de Ocha-Ifá, Religión Lucumí
- Tradition
- Lucumí, Regla de Ocha, Regla de Ocha-Ifá, Yoruba-derived religion, Cuban Catholicism, Espiritismo
- Related concepts
- Orishas, Aché, Babalawo, Santero and santera, Oriaté, Ilé (ritual house), Cabildo de nación, Diloggún, Obi, Omiero, Egún (ancestors), Botánica, Syncretism debate
Reference record available.
ModalityJapanese Reiki lineage: hand-placement energy practice
Satya Japanese Reiki is a hand-placement energy practice in the Reiki family, taught under a Japanese Reiki label.
ComplementaryMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- None recorded
- Tradition
- Reiki family, Japanese Reiki (label used by several lineages)
- Related concepts
- Hand placement, Energy field (a belief, not shown by research), Japanese Reiki label, Reiki Therapy of Mikao Usui
Reference record available.
ModalityGazing-based divination (reflective or translucent surfaces)
Scrying is the practice of gazing at a reflective or translucent surface in order to see visions.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Crystal gazing, Crystal vision, Crystallomancy, Catoptromancy, Hydromancy, Mirror gazing divination
- Tradition
- Western esotericism, Spiritualism
- Related concepts
- Intuition, Awareness, Attention
Reference record available.
ModalityEnergy healing system with Egyptian themes
Seichim is an Egyptian-themed energy healing system, also spelled Sekhem, that is often taught alongside Reiki.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Sekhem, Seichem, SKHM, SSR, Sekhem-Seichim-Reiki
- Tradition
- Western esotericism, New Age spirituality
- Related concepts
- Universal life energy, Attunement, Lineage, Spirituality, Distance treatment
Reference record available.
ModalityDepth-psychology-derived reflective practice
Shadow work is a reflective practice, drawn from Jungian psychology, of examining disowned or unwanted parts of the self.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Shadow integration, Jungian shadow work, Working with the shadow, Shadow self work
- Tradition
- Analytical psychology (C. G. Jung), Depth psychology, Contemporary self-help and personal development
- Related concepts
- Shadow, Personal unconscious, Projection, Individuation, Anima and animus, Integration of disowned material
Reference record available.
ModalitySpirit-centred healing and ritual practices led by practitioners in altered states
A group of spirit-centred healing practices in which practitioners work in altered states of consciousness.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Shamanism, Shamanic practice
- Tradition
- Siberian Tungusic and Khanty shamanism, Nepali jhakri shamanism, Hmong shamanism, Core shamanism and neo-shamanism
- Related concepts
- Altered states of consciousness, Shamanic journeying, Drumming, Soul loss and soul retrieval, Spirit world, Spiritual and physical causes of illness, Core shamanism, Cultural appropriation
Reference record available.
ModalityReligious ritual and shrine worship practices
Shinto rituals are the purification, offering, prayer and festival rites performed for kami at Japanese shrines.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Shinto ceremonies, Shinto rites, Shrine rites, Kami worship rites
- Tradition
- Shinto, Association of Shinto Shrines (Jinja Honcho)
- Related concepts
- kami, harae, misogi, kegare, tsumi, norito, shinsen, naorai, matsuri, kagura, omamori, ofuda, hatsumode, shichi-go-san, kannushi, miko, temizu, kitō
Reference record available.
ModalityDivination by drawn lots and by chance-opened books
Sortilege is divination by drawing or casting lots, and bibliomancy is divination by opening a book at random.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Sortilege, Bibliomancy, Cleromancy, Sortes, Casting lots, Book divination, Sortes Vergilianae, Sortes Sanctorum, Fal
- Tradition
- Christianity, Islam, Western esotericism
- Related concepts
- Intuition, Spirituality
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: belief in a non-physical, animating or enduring self
The soul is the idea of a non-physical or enduring self, understood in different ways across religions and philosophies.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- None recorded
- Tradition
- Ancient Greek philosophy, Platonism, Aristotelianism, Judaism, Christianity, Islamic philosophy, Hinduism, Buddhism, Chinese religion, Indigenous traditions, Transpersonal psychology
- Related concepts
- Psyche, Nefesh, Neshamah, Atman, Anatman, Hun and po, Mind-body dualism, Higher self, Immortality
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: belief that souls agree before birth on life lessons or relationships
Soul contracts is the belief that souls agree before birth on lessons, relationships or hardships for a lifetime.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Soul contract, Soul Contract Healing, Soul agreement, Pre-birth plan, Pre-birth planning, Soul plan
- Tradition
- Platonic myth of Er, Rabbinic and Lurianic Jewish writings on the soul before birth, Theosophy, Twentieth-century hypnotic regression, New Age spirituality
- Related concepts
- Pre-birth planning, Life between lives, Intermission memories, Reincarnation, Karma, Fate and fatalism, Theodicy, Hypnotic suggestion, False memory, Self-blame
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: belief in a destined or spiritually matched romantic partner
Soul mates is the idea that one person is destined or spiritually matched to another as a partner.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Soulmate, Soul mate, Soul-mate, Soulmates, Soul mate belief, Destined partner, Other half, Bashert
- Tradition
- Platonic philosophy, Jewish thought (bashert), Romanticism, New Age spirituality
- Related concepts
- Destiny belief, Growth belief, Implicit theories of relationships, Romantic love myths, Aristophanes' myth of divided humans, Soulmate theory
Reference record available.
ModalityShamanic and neo-shamanic ritual for explained soul loss
Soul retrieval is a ritual in which a practitioner seeks to return a soul believed lost from a person.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Shamanic soul retrieval
- Tradition
- Siberian shamanism, Amazonian shamanism, Andean healing, Hmong shamanism, Core shamanism and neo-shamanism
- Related concepts
- Soul loss, Susto, Core shamanism, Dissociation, Cultural idioms of distress, Soul calling
Reference record available.
ModalityRitual smoke and incense-burning practices for purification of places, objects or people
Space clearing is the burning of dried plants or resins so that the smoke purifies or protects a place, person or object.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Smudging, Space cleansing, Smoke cleansing, Energy clearing
- Tradition
- Indigenous North American smudging (varies by nation), Scottish Highland saining, South Asian havan and incense traditions, Christian liturgical incense, New Age and Neopagan smudge-stick use
- Related concepts
- Smudge sticks, Sacred medicines, Purification, Protection, Incense, Fumigation, Indoor air quality, White sage sustainability
Reference record available.
ModalityDivination and spirit-communication practice using a lettered board and pointer
A spirit board is a flat board printed with letters, numbers and words, used with a pointer to spell out answers.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Talking board, Ouija board, Spirit-communication board
- Tradition
- Spiritualism, Christianity
- Related concepts
- Spirituality, Ideomotor effect
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: belief that obstacles to growth or energy flow can be sensed and cleared
Spiritual blocks are obstacles to growth or energy flow that New Age and energy-healing teachings describe.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Energy blocks, Energetic blockages
- Tradition
- New Age spirituality, Traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda, Reichian body psychotherapy, Theosophy
- Related concepts
- Energy blockage, Qi stagnation, Ama, Character armour, Chakra blockage, Karmic block, Ancestral block, Spiritual struggle, Experiential avoidance
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: belief that a person, object or place can be ritually purified of spiritual impurity
Spiritual cleansing is the idea that a person, object or place can be ritually purified, held across many faiths and in wellness.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Ritual purification, Smudging, Spiritual purification, Ritual cleansing
- Tradition
- Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, Shinto
- Related concepts
- Ritual purity, Ritual impurity, Purification, Immersion, Smudging, Smoke ceremony, Space clearing, Banishing, Macbeth effect, Scrupulosity
Reference record available.
ModalityOne-to-one spiritual accompaniment and contemplative listening
Spiritual direction is a one-to-one relationship in which a trained person accompanies another's spiritual life.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Spiritual companionship, Spiritual guidance
- Tradition
- Desert Fathers and Mothers (early Christian monasticism), Ignatian spirituality, Benedictine tradition, Celtic Christianity, Protestant pastoral guidance, Multi-faith spiritual companionship
- Related concepts
- Directee, Discernment, Deep listening, Covenant between director and directee, Supervision of directors, Distinction from psychotherapy
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: crisis framing in which intense spiritual experiences are seen as growth-related
Spiritual emergency is a concept for a crisis in which intense spiritual experiences overwhelm a person's functioning.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Spiritual crisis, Psychospiritual crisis
- Tradition
- Transpersonal psychology, Grof framework of non-ordinary states
- Related concepts
- Spiritual emergence, Non-ordinary states of consciousness, Religious or spiritual problem (DSM Z code), Differential diagnosis from psychosis, Kundalini awakening, Spiritually transformative experiences, Integration after intense experiences
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: change over time in a person's relationship to the sacred, to meaning or to transcendence
Spiritual growth is a term for change over time in a person's sense of the sacred, meaning or transcendence.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Spiritual development
- Tradition
- Christian mysticism, Psychology of religion, Humanistic psychology, Transpersonal psychology, Faith development theory, New Age spirituality
- Related concepts
- Mystic way, Stages of faith, Self-transcendence, Peak and plateau experiences, Spiritual transcendence, Daily spiritual experiences, Posttraumatic growth, Spiritual emergence and spiritual emergency, Spiritual bypassing, Religious or spiritual problem
Reference record available.
ModalityFamily of spiritual, prayer-based and energy-based healing practices
Spiritual healing is a family of practices in which healing is attributed to spiritual or non-physical agency.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Spirit healing
- Tradition
- British Spiritualist healing, Religious and prayer-based healing, Biofield and energy healing
- Related concepts
- Attunement, Contact healing, Absent healing, Intercessory prayer, Biofield, Spirit guides
Reference record available.
ModalityHypnosis-based spiritual and past-life exploration
Spiritual regression hypnosis is the use of guided hypnosis to explore claimed memories of a spiritual state between lives.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Spiritual regression, Life between lives regression, Life Between Lives hypnotherapy, Between-lives regression, Inter-life regression
- Tradition
- Theosophy, New Age spirituality, Western esotericism, Clinical and academic hypnosis
- Related concepts
- Reincarnation, Karma, Soul, Spirituality, Hypnotic induction, Suggestion, Focused attention, Awareness
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: 19th-century religious movement and mediumship churches
Spiritualism is a religious movement begun in 1848 that centers on mediumship and belief in life after death.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- None recorded
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Mediumship, Survival of the soul, Spirit communication, Absent healing, Seven Principles, Séance
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: contested idea of seeking meaning, connection or the sacred, with or without religion
Spirituality is a contested term for how people seek meaning, connection and the sacred, with or without religion.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Spiritual life
- Tradition
- Christian spirituality (history of the term), Pauline and medieval Latin usage, Holistic mind-body-spirit milieu, Spiritual care in palliative and health care settings, Spiritual but not religious self-identification
- Related concepts
- Religion versus spirituality, Spiritual but not religious, Spiritual care, Spiritual well-being, Meaning and purpose, Connectedness, The sacred or transcendent, Subjective turn, Holistic milieu, Religious and spiritual struggle, Negative religious coping, Spiritual harm
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: belief that some people's souls originate on other stars or planets
Starseed is a New Age belief that a person's soul originated on another star system or planet before birth on Earth.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Starseeds, Star seed, Star people, Star children, Star-born souls, Wayshowers
- Tradition
- New Age spirituality, Theosophy, Spiritualism, UFO religions and contactee culture, Indigo child literature
- Related concepts
- Extraterrestrial soul origin, Ascension, Indigo children, Crystal children, Lightworkers, Life mission, Channeling, Dimensional shift
Reference record available.
ModalityIslamic mystical devotional and healing practices
Sufi healing is a label for healing practices linked to Sufi Islam, such as dhikr, shrine visits and order-led programmes.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Sufi spiritual healing, Sufi healing practices, Sufi Healing Order healing teachings, Islamic Sufi healing
- Tradition
- Sufism (tasawwuf), Inayati lineage (Chishtiyya), Shadhiliyya, Sufi shrine practices in South Asia, Islamic-Sufi rehabilitation in Indonesia, Sufi psychology (Maktab Tarighat Oveyssi)
- Related concepts
- Dhikr (remembrance), Sama (listening), Muraqabah, Baraka, Shrine visitation (ziyara), Purification of the soul, Teacher and student relationship, Spiritual coping, Medical pluralism
Reference record available.
ModalitySufi ritual whirling and ceremony within the Mevlevi order
Sufi whirling (Sema) is a rotating ritual movement of the Mevlevi Sufi order, performed within a structured ceremony.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Sema, Mevlevi Sema ceremony, Sufi whirling, Whirling dervishes
- Tradition
- Mevlevi (Mevleviye) Sufi order, Sufism within Islam, Anatolian and Ottoman Sufi traditions
- Related concepts
- Sema (samaʿ), Semazen, Semahane, Ayin, Mevlevihane, Whirling around the body axis, Soul awareness and loosening of the material self, Sufi-inspired mindful dance
Reference record available.
ModalityIndigenous ceremonial heat practice of many Nations
A ceremony of many Indigenous peoples of North America held in a heated, enclosed lodge under each Nation's own protocols.
HolisticMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Sweat lodge, Inipi, Madoodiswan, Sweat ceremony, Temazcal (Mesoamerican parallel)
- Tradition
- Anishinaabe (Ojibway, Saulteaux), Lakota, Dakota and Nakota, Navajo (Diné), Mesoamerican Indigenous peoples (temazcal)
- Related concepts
- Purification, Ceremony, Indigenous cultural healing, Intergenerational trauma, Cultural appropriation, Heat illness
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: South Asian religious traditions and modern Western adaptations
Tantra is a set of South Asian Hindu, Buddhist and Jain traditions of ritual, mantra and meditation practice.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Tantrism, Tantric Sex, Neo-Tantra, Neotantra, Tantric traditions
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Divine Feminine, Divine Masculine, Spirituality, Spiritual Growth, Awareness, Mind-Body Connection, Attention, Kundalini, Mantra, Initiation, Guru-disciple lineage, Deity yoga, Shakti
Reference record available.
ModalityCard-based divination and reflection practice
Tarot reading is the use of a tarot pack, originally a 15th-century Italian card game, for divination or reflection.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Tarot card reading, Tarot divination
- Tradition
- Italian trionfi card games, French and English occult writing from the 1780s, Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, Contemporary counselling and self-reflection uses
- Related concepts
- Trump cards (Major Arcana), Spread, Cartomancy, Projective technique, Cold reading, Barnum effect, Self-reflection
Reference record available.
ModalityDivination by patterns left in a cup
Tasseography is a divination practice in which a reader interprets patterns left by tea leaves or coffee grounds in a cup.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Tea leaf reading, Tea-cup reading, Coffee cup reading, Coffee reading, Kahve falı, Tasseomancy
- Tradition
- Ottoman folk practice, Armenian coffee divination, Syrian and Lebanese coffee cup reading, Scottish tea-cup reading (as described in one handbook)
- Related concepts
- Intuition
Reference record available.
ModalityWestern Reiki style combining Reiki, Seichem and breathing practices
Tera-Mai Reiki is a Western Reiki style that combines Reiki with Seichem and adds breathing practices.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Tera Mai Reiki, Tera Mai, Tera-Mai
- Tradition
- Western esotericism, New Age spirituality, Western Reiki (Takata lineage), Usui Reiki Ryōhō (Japan)
- Related concepts
- Reiki energy, Attunement, Lineage, Distance treatment, Spirituality
Reference record available.
ModalitySeven-degree energy practice from a Reiki lineage, taught with initiations
The Radiance Technique is a seven-degree energy practice taught by Barbara Ray's lineage and formerly named Authentic Reiki.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Authentic Reiki, Real Reiki, TRT, Radiance Technique
- Tradition
- Western Reiki (Takata lineage)
- Related concepts
- Universal life energy, Attunement, Distance treatment, Lineage
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: modern esoteric and religious movement of Western origin
A modern esoteric movement founded in 1875 that teaches a shared spiritual wisdom beneath the world's religions.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Theosophy, Modern Theosophy, Theosophical movement, Theosophical Society teachings
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Karma, Reincarnation, Universal brotherhood, Hidden Masters, Root races, Evolution of consciousness, Subtle bodies, Comparative religion, Akashic Records, World Teacher
Reference record available.
ModalityNurse-developed energy-field practice using the hands near the body
Therapeutic Touch is a hands-near-body practice, developed by nurses in the 1970s, based on a proposed human energy field.
ComplementaryMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- TT
- Tradition
- Krieger-Kunz nursing lineage (New York University, early 1970s), Holistic nursing
- Related concepts
- Human energy field, Biofield, Centering, Assessment of the field, Unruffling, Rebalancing, Laying-on of hands, Prana, Nursing diagnosis of energy field imbalance
Reference record available.
ModalityBranded meditation and belief-work method
ThetaHealing is a trademarked meditation and belief-work method whose practitioners say it draws on a theta brainwave state.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- ThetaHealing, ThetaHealing technique
- Tradition
- Contemporary spiritual healing methods (United States, from 1995)
- Related concepts
- Theta state, Limiting beliefs, The Creator, Seven planes of existence, Belief work, Dual-brain EEG, Law of Attraction
Reference record available.
ModalityTibetan Buddhist and Bon ritual divination (dice, rosary and related methods)
Mo is a Tibetan divination tradition, used in Buddhist and Bon communities, that includes dice and rosary methods.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Mo divination, Tibetan dice divination, sho mo, 'phreng mo, Tibetan mo
- Tradition
- Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism, Bon
- Related concepts
- Spirituality
Reference record available.
ModalityReiki-derived hands-on energy practice (Western label)
Tibetan Reiki is a label for several Western Reiki systems that add Tibetan-named symbols or attunements to Usui Reiki.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Usui/Tibetan Reiki, Usui Tibetan Reiki, Tibetan Usui Reiki, Raku Kei Reiki, Men Chho Reiki, Jinlap Reiki
- Tradition
- Western Reiki (Takata lineage), Usui Reiki Ryōhō (Japan), Buddhism, Theosophy
- Related concepts
- Reiki energy, Attunement, Reiju, Lineage, Distance treatment, Spirituality
Reference record available.
ModalitySound-based meditation and relaxation practice using metal standing bowls
A sound practice using hand-played metal bowls that are struck or rubbed to produce sustained tones for meditation.
ComplementaryHolisticMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Singing bowls, Himalayan singing bowl, Tibetan singing bowls, Sound bowl, Standing bell bowl
- Tradition
- Buddhism, New Age spirituality
- Related concepts
- Attention, Awareness, Mindfulness, Mind-Body Connection, Spirituality
Reference record available.
ModalityMantra-based meditation technique taught in a standardised course
Transcendental Meditation is a mantra-based meditation technique taught through a standardised course by certified teachers.
ComplementaryMetaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- TM, TM technique, Transcendental Meditation technique, Transcendental Meditation program
- Tradition
- Advaita Vedanta (as interpreted by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi), Neo-Hinduism (scholarly description), Transcendental Meditation movement
- Related concepts
- Mantra, Personal instruction by a certified teacher, Twice-daily practice, Standardised course, Rishi (seer), Relaxation response (related but distinct)
Reference record available.
ModalityHypnosis-based approach combined with transpersonal psychology
Transpersonal hypnosis is hypnosis combined with transpersonal psychology to explore meaning and spiritual experience.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Transpersonal hypnotherapy
- Tradition
- Clinical and academic hypnosis, Buddhism, Transpersonal psychology
- Related concepts
- Spirituality, Awareness, Hypnotic induction, Suggestion, Focused attention, Attention, Mindfulness
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: belief that one soul is divided between two people who are destined to meet
A modern spiritual belief that one soul is divided between two people who are destined to meet.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Twin Flame, Twin Flame Healing, Twin Soul, Divine counterpart
- Tradition
- New Age spirituality, Platonic myth of divided humans (cited as a precedent)
- Related concepts
- Soulmate, Karmic partner, Runner and chaser, Divine counterpart, Destiny beliefs, Growth beliefs, Spiritual awakening
Reference record available.
ModalityAfro-Brazilian spirit-mediumship consultation
Umbanda spiritual consultation is a one-to-one conversation between a client and a spirit said to be incorporated in a medium.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Umbanda consultation, Consulta espiritual, Umbanda spirit consultation
- Tradition
- Umbanda, Kardecist Spiritism, Candomblé, Afro-Brazilian religions, Brazilian Catholicism
- Related concepts
- Consulta, Gira, Incorporation, Mediunidade, Caboclos, Pretos velhos, Exus and pombagiras, Orixás, Terreiro and centro, Cambones, Banhos de ervas, Axé, Spiritual surgery, Spirit evolution and charity
Reference record available.
ModalityJapanese hand-healing method and the lineage claimed as the source of Reiki
Usui Reiki Ryōhō is the hand-healing method that Mikao Usui began teaching in Tokyo in 1922.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Usui Reiki Ryoho, Usui Reiki, Usui Reiki Therapy
- Tradition
- Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai (Tokyo, 1922), Hayashi Reiki Kenkyūkai, Japanese spiritual therapy (seishin ryōhō) context
- Related concepts
- Reiju, Gokai (five precepts), Teate (hand healing), Shoden, okuden and shinpiden, Enkaku ryōhō (distance treatment), Kokoro (heart-mind), Lineage chart
Reference record available.
ModalityTraditional Indian architecture and spatial design system
Vastu Shastra is a traditional Indian system of architecture that prescribes site, layout and direction for buildings.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Vastu, Vaastu, Vastu Vidya, Vastushastra, Sthapatya Veda
- Tradition
- Hinduism
- Related concepts
- Sacred Geometry, Spirituality
Reference record available.
ModalityBuddhist-derived insight meditation, often taught on silent retreats
Vipassana is a Theravada-derived meditation practice of observing sensations and mental states, often taught on silent retreats.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Vipassana, Vipassanā, Insight meditation, Insight (Vipassana) meditation
- Tradition
- Theravada Buddhism, Burmese lay meditation movement, Mahasi Sayadaw lineage, Ledi Sayadaw lineage, S. N. Goenka tradition (U Ba Khin lineage), Western Insight Meditation centres
- Related concepts
- Insight (vipassana), Calm or concentration (samatha), Mindfulness (sati), Bare attention, Noble silence, Equanimity, Observation of bodily sensations, Silent residential retreat, Loving-kindness (metta), Meditation-related adverse effects
Reference record available.
ConceptConcept: living processes depend on a vital force or principle
Vitalism is a historical belief that living things depend on a vital force or principle beyond physics and chemistry.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- vital force, vital principle, vitalist theory
- Tradition
- Greek natural philosophy, Galenic physiology, Montpellier medical school, French physiology after Bichat, German chemistry after Wöhler
- Related concepts
- pneuma, vital force, vital principle, organic and inorganic compounds, urea synthesis (1828), animism (Stahl), energy field (Reiki)
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: Afro-Haitian religion and healing tradition
Vodou is the Afro-Haitian religion centered on service to the lwa, its spirits, practiced in Haiti and its diaspora.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Haitian Vodou, Vodoun
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Soul, Spirituality, Ancestral Patterns
Reference record available.
ModalityWeather-related ritual and spirit-based practice
A weather shaman is a ritual specialist said to bring, stop or move rain through spirit-based practices.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Weather Shamanism, Rain Shaman, Rain Doctor, Rain-Maker, Weather-Working, Pawang Hujan, Rain Handler
- Tradition
- Native California rain-makers, Numic peoples of the Great Basin, Indonesian pawang hujan, Contemporary neo-shamanic weather-working
- Related concepts
- Sacred Thunder, Ritual thunder, clouds, wind and rain, Sympathetic magic, Spirits of weather, Weather-working, Rain handler, Charmstones, Bull-roarer, Local wisdom
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: academic field and family of Western esoteric currents
Western esotericism is an academic field and umbrella term for Hermetic, Gnostic, alchemical and occult currents.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Western esotericism
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Hermeticism, Gnosticism, Christian Kabbalah, Alchemy, Astrology, Rosicrucianism, Occultism, Ceremonial magic, Theosophy, Rejected knowledge, Prisca theologia, Natural magic
Reference record available.
ModalityHand-placement energy practice taught in three levels with initiations
Western Reiki is the hand-placement practice taught in the West through Hawayo Takata's line from Hayashi Chūjirō.
MetaphysicalComplementary
Entry details
- Aliases
- Usui Shiki Ryoho, Takata Reiki, Usui System of Natural Healing, Usui System of Reiki Healing
- Tradition
- Hayashi Chūjirō and Hawayo Takata line, The Reiki Alliance, Usui Reiki Ryōhō (Japan), Western Reiki
- Related concepts
- Three levels (Reiki 1, Reiki 2, Master), Attunement or initiation, Reiju, Self-treatment, Foundation treatment, Lineage, Office of the Grandmaster, Takata's account of Usui
Reference record available.
ModalityLight visualization and invocation within spiritual healing traditions
White light healing is the practice of picturing or invoking white light for protection or healing.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- White light visualization, White light protection
- Tradition
- Theosophy, Spiritualism, Post-Theosophical New Age
- Related concepts
- Protective thought-forms, Aura, Healing light, Sending healing at a distance, Guided imagery, Distinction from clinical light therapy
Reference record available.
ModalityReligious guidance within contemporary Pagan Witchcraft (Wicca)
Wiccan spiritual guidance is counsel on spiritual matters from a Wiccan priestess, priest or elder.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Wiccan counseling, Wiccan spiritual counseling, Pagan pastoral care
- Tradition
- Gardnerian Wicca, Alexandrian Wicca, Dianic Wicca, Cochranian Wicca, Reclaiming, Feri, Stregheria, Eclectic Wicca, Solitary Wicca
- Related concepts
- Goddess and God, Horned God, Triple Goddess, Coven, High Priestess and High Priest, Book of Shadows, Circle and altar, Wheel of the Year, Sabbats, Wiccan Rede, Solitary practice, Pagan chaplaincy
Reference record available.
ModalityModern spiritual and energy-based women's wellness practice
Womb healing is a modern spiritual practice that treats the womb as a symbolic and energetic center.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Womb wisdom, Womb clearing, Womb blessing, Sacred womb work, Womb work
- Tradition
- Modern feminist spirituality, Goddess spirituality movement, Red Tent and women's circles, Mesoamerican abdominal massage traditions (borrowed or adapted)
- Related concepts
- The womb as a symbolic or energetic center, Menstrual cycle awareness, Divine feminine, Ritual and ceremony, Stored emotional memory (practitioner belief), Women's circles
Reference record available.
ModalityDivination by omens read from wood and burning logs
Xylomancy is divination in which omens are read from pieces of wood or from logs as they lie and burn.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- xylomancie
- Tradition
- Slavonia as named in older reference works, Technical divination (omen reading)
- Related concepts
- Omens, Presages, Dry wood found on a path, Logs in a fireplace, Hearth saying about a visitor, Divination
Reference record available.
ModalityVedic and Hindu fire ritual
Yajna is a family of Vedic and Hindu rituals in which offerings are made into a consecrated fire.
Metaphysical
Entry details
- Aliases
- Yajna, Yagya, Yagna, Homa, Homam, Havan, Hawan, Vedic fire ritual
- Tradition
- Vedic srauta ritual, Hindu household and temple ritual, Arya Samaj congregational homa, Newar Brahmin agnihotra (Nepal), Tantric homa
- Related concepts
- yajna (offering, worship), homa (offering into fire), ahuti (oblation), havis (offering material), Agni (fire deity), agnihotra, srauta and grhya rites, havan samagri (offering mixture)
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: Indigenous Panoan people of Acre, Brazil, with ceremonial and healing traditions
The Yawanawá are a Panoan-speaking Indigenous people of Acre, Brazil, with their own ceremonial and healing traditions.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Yawanawá
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Shuãnka (healing chant), Xinaya (ayahuasca specialist), Saiti (festival and chant), Mariri (festival), Uma aki (caiçuma festival), Plano de Vida (Life Plan), Shuhu (community center), Cultural revitalization
Reference record available.
TraditionTradition: South Asian philosophy, practice lineages and modern postural yoga
Yoga traditions are South Asian philosophical and practice lineages of yoga, plus the modern postural yoga linked to them.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Yoga traditions, Haṭhayoga, Modern postural yoga, Mysore tradition, Haṭha yoga
- Tradition
- Not assigned
- Related concepts
- Yoga Sutra, Eight limbs, Samkhya, Isvara, Karma yoga, Jnana yoga, Bhakti yoga, Haṭhayoga, Asana, Pranayama, Kaivalya, Moksha, Vinyasa
Reference record available.
ModalityWest African religious and healing tradition with diaspora forms
The Yoruba tradition is the religious and healing system of the Yoruba peoples of West Africa and its diaspora forms.
MetaphysicalAlternative
Entry details
- Aliases
- Yoruba religion, Yoruba traditional religion, Yoruba traditional medicine, Ifá-Òrìṣà, Orisha tradition, Lucumí, Santería, Candomblé
- Tradition
- Yoruba religion, Ifá, Òrìṣà worship, Lucumí / Regla de Ocha-Ifá (Cuba), Santería, Candomblé
- Related concepts
- Orí, Ara, Ẹ̀mí, Olódùmarè, Òrìṣà, Àṣẹ (aché), Babalawo, Iyanifa, Terreiro, Medical pluralism
Reference record available.
ModalitySeated meditation within Chan and Zen Buddhism
Zazen is seated meditation in Chan and Zen Buddhism, practised in monasteries, temples and lay groups.
MetaphysicalHolistic
Entry details
- Aliases
- Zazen, Zen meditation, Zen sitting, Seated Zen meditation
- Tradition
- Sōtō Zen, Rinzai Zen, Ōbaku Zen, Chan Buddhism (China), Sŏn Buddhism (Korea), Thiền (Vietnam)
- Related concepts
- Zazen, Shikantaza, Kōan, Silent illumination, Practice-realisation, Kenshō, Makyō, Breath counting, Buddha-nature
Reference record available.